Recombinant and natural human interferons: analysis of the incidence and clinical impact of neutralizing antibodies

This review summarizes and analyzes the clinical outcomes following treatment of a wide range of diseases with recombinant interferons (r-IFNs) and/or natural interferons (n-IFNs). The investigation focuses on the frequency of neutralizing antibodies (NABs) directed against IFN, which are formed during treatment and their clinical impact. r-IFNs (α-2a, α-2b, β-1a, and β-1b) induced seroconversion with generation of NABs in 17.2% of patients studied. The highest incidence of NABs occurred in macular degeneration (61.4%) with the lowest in multiple sclerosis (14.7%). The incidence of antibodies induced against n-IFNs was very low (